Two Observers
by Lord Sicarius
Summary: Set after the events from Load Region of Deja Vu (Movie), Kurisu had just managed to save Okabe from being wiped from existence. Because of what transpired, Kurisu now possesses one of the most rare, unique abilities known to man: Reading Steiner. This means that for Okabe, he is no longer alone... but at what cost? Join Okabe and Kurisu as they take on this world line; together.


**Hello there! So for those of you who follow me from the BBRAE community, you guessed it; I'm still 100% active on this site. As per usual, I am slammed with life, but nevertheless I maintain my passion for writing. This if you could not already tell is not Teen Titans, and for that I apologize. However, this show was so good... I knew that I needed to create some additional content for it! Loved it all through and through, and now I want to be able to channel that passion into the writing for this story. This story is obviously on Steins;Gate, and if you haven't watched it or you're not into anime, I highly recommend it. I am new to anime myself, but this show is not just a good anime, but a good show in GENERAL. Very well written and executed. I recommend watching Steins;Gate up to episode 22, then watch episode 23 B (the alternate episode), Steins;Gate 0, then finally back to Steins;Gate 23 and from then on watching the OVA and movie afterward. You will not be disappointed. Just be patient with the first ten episodes; they are world building.**

**Anywho, I hope those of you in the Steins;Gate community will enjoy this journey I will be creating. And if you're from the BBRAE community, I hope you can take something from this too. Or, you could just not. That works too. Like I said before, I am new to anime... so sorry if I do not get some of the Japanese cultural things right. I have begun to like anime, but I am not a full blown weeb... so I am very limited in my knowledge. So forgive me if I do not write formalities or whatever properly... cause it's bound to be incorrect. So yeah. Enjoy!**

**(Disclaimer: I do not own Steins;Gate)**

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_**Prologue:**_

Time.

An interlinear flowing structure; having an unknown beginning, and no known ending. Constant. What separates the infinite from the finite? Is it the continual versus the temporal? Or is it merely the byproduct of one's perception?

Time.

Originally thought to be a human construct. Ultimately dependent on the measurement used, and the location of the observer. The natural rotation of the Earth on its axis, and the revolving of the Earth around the Sun consist of where our two most basic measurements of time derive. These arbitrary metrics of an intangible cause… asinine attempts to bring the world into order.

Time is not dependent. Time is not confined to quantifiable, calculable frameworks contained by the mortality of this world. Time reaches beyond the grasp of that which is the ordinary. It is not contingent upon one who simply observes.

Is time pre-destined, or can it be changed? Can it be altered, or do all means lead to the same end? Do the strings of time intertwine; bonding together… linking itself to the same object? Or, do they parallel while reaching individualized results? Can one truly defy the initial paths each string is attached to?

Time.

Unquestionably, the most empirical truth behind the façade we know as time, is that the method used by an observer determines the level of awareness concerning the very nature of time. Time goes beyond what is first perceived; split by lines in which remains unseen. At least, to most people.

There are individual world lines; lines that are each separated by variations of the past, present, and future. The things that exist in one world line cease to exist in another. Sometimes there is happiness where there is pain; and other times, there is only pain where the very idea of happiness is nothing more than a vain… hopeless dream. These alternative realities are never felt, never known in most cases. Completely independent of one another, never once intermingling. Yet… if the circumstance is astronomically precise, one could retain distant memories of a past life within a world line. Though… the ramifications of such a retention is an overwhelming burden. To remember the consequences of actions never taken, as well as the knowledge of what could have prevented the catastrophic in one's life, is simply a devastating never ending torment that plagues the mind for all of eternity.

To carry this level of burden alone, is to cease in truly living. What is real can never be easily distinguished from the ethereal. For the longest time… it was the burden of one soul.

This… was _my_ burden.

I, Okabe Rintarou, experienced going beyond the one percent divergence and fighting against the attractor field to reach the Steins Gate world line. The effects of the drastic measures taken to accomplish this were overly substantial, and I for the longest time saw time as it was; a single observer of a picture larger than anyone could ever even fathom. I have seen the desires of my dearest friends solidify, then vanish by the cause of my own doing. What was left, was for me to remember how their lives could have been. Would have been. Should have been. There are things that they should have been able to experience, but now remains as nothing more than a distant memory. A dream. Deja vu. Holding onto all of this, feeling as though it would stay tied to me for the rest of my life, was unbearable.

Now, enter the second observer.

There are now two observers of these world lines. Those who can understand the magnitude of strife that comes from such a role. This shared empathy creates an all-consuming void filled with despair, devouring the very essence of joy. It continues to gradually pull on our hearts, our experiences dancing between world lines hitting us in the face like the sharp piercing rain from a hurricane.

But, with this shared curse comes an understanding. The burden is no longer one I must carry alone… because now, I have one who is there to carry it with me.

And out of all people in this fading world, my most precious is the one who can truly be by my side in the midst of it all.

This was the choice of the Steins Gate.

_My_ Kurisu.

_**End of Prologue**_

* * *

"_No matter what world line you're on, you'll never be alone. I'll find you, wherever you are! I will continue you to observe you… just as you kept on observing me."_

"_If that's the Steins Gate's choice. Well, Cristina, care to return it to me? …My first kiss…"_

"_Never."_

It had been several days since that very moment. The moment where everything was put on the line in order to salvage a love that was written in the stars. One had already defied the rules of God; now a second had further provoked His impending wrath. Though was there truly a kind of God full of punishment and retribution? Scientists never bothered to entertain these kinds of questions. However, could they really go beyond their mortal limitations to alter the very universe itself without consequence? No… the memories of what had happened between world lines were punishment enough. This was it. They both now carried that burden, and carry it together they shall.

Now was the time for them to finally find their happiness.

Together.

Okabe gazed through the window of the Future Gadget Lab, reflecting on what had all transpired. His arm rested on the wall beside it, leaning forward pressing his weight against it as the light from the sun poured over his lanky physique.

"Kurisu… you really did everything you could to save me…" He said to himself.

The self-proclaimed mad scientist gathered his attention toward the city of Akihabara below, bustling with floods of people. Crowds of unacquainted faces, statistical samples of an unfamiliar population. These unique yet indistinguishable individuals continued in a sequential and predictable manner; traversing the different stores and restaurants that were spread throughout. It was bewildering to ponder… recognizing that so many people go about their lives completely unaware of changes made from altering the world lines. There would be a large amount of the populace that would never know the level of sacrifice that went into the preservation of this world's life. Somehow, someway, both a dystopia and World War III were both avoided; and yet the actions taken to prevent such catastrophes will remain unbeknownst to them. It must have been a freeing thing. Living a life without the fear of a calamitous future. There was an unprecedented peace in their countenance, one that Okabe was very jealous of.

Be that as it may, he was fine that he and the Future Gadget Lab would never be acknowledged for saving the world. He had no desire for fame or recognition. He only wished for a future that he could share with both Mayuri and Kurisu.

That very future, had been achieved.

"She's here, and so am I. That's all that matters." Okabe told himself.

_That's all that matters._ His thoughts repeated to himself.

_That's all that matters._

_That's all that matters._

It's what he wanted to believe.

But it didn't make him feel any better.

* * *

Kurisu sighed as the words on the pages seemed to mock her; taunting her with false accusations such as being too inept to understand their meaning. After hours of studying, books would do that to you. All of your ability to retain became minimized to mere nothingness after reaching a certain point of mental exhaustion. It didn't help that the content was difficult either.

Plopping "The Happiness Hypothesis by Johnathan Haidt" hardcover down on her bed next to her, Kurisu stretched her arms out. A yawn escaped her pale lips as shivers ran down her spine. It was a cold night, though that was partly due to her A/C being impressively powerful.

The book that she had been reading for hours on end really perplexed her. She was a neuroscientist, and so naturally any book pertaining to the brain or human thought processes brought forth her intrigue. Yet this particular book was so controversial in its own right… and she just could not wrap her head around it. The author was a psychologist who attempted to explore philosophy's most famous ideologies, and most notably the origin and definition of happiness.

"Happiness huh…" Kurisu said to the emptiness around her.

"_T-This is…"_

"_A spoon… and fork…"_

"_You wanted them, so…"_

"_Yes, I did… but I never told you that…"_

Kurisu blushed at the memory. How a single man whose very image is a distortion in her hippocampus could pull such raw unadulterated emotion from her was beyond understanding. No matter how hard she tried to rationalize it all, it still left her reeling. Though one thing was for certain: she was in love with him.

Was the shared moments between them her source of happiness? Is happiness the emotion that was generated from their time together? Or was it merely the power of dopamine and serotonin deceiving her? Her memory of him while renewed still remained fragmented. While she had finally proven through experience that the crazy "world line" theory was true, and that her "dreams" were really memories from other world lines… there was still so many unanswered questions. Yet, despite going against her scientific instincts in wanting to find the answers to a once outrageous claim, she loved him.

Now that was crazy.

Maybe it was because she was able to piece some of her memories together. Maybe it was because she could sense just how close they really were in those other world lines. Even up to recently, it was just so easy to love him. She even went back in time to give his younger self a genuine, heartfelt kiss. Poor kid, didn't even know what hit him.

And now she was left wondering if she was truly happy. Yes, she knew she had feelings for him. Yes, she began to relearn him and herself more and more each day. But she is still not the same Kurisu from the alpha world line. It was so unfair how he was able to remember everything, and she just now only beginning to tap into the power of Reading Steiner.

He picked up on it too. He wasn't detoured or upset, he was simply patient with her. Perhaps he was just so assured by their kisses that he felt that she was already in the palm of his hand. But reality kept that from being true. Unfortunately, her inner turmoil became so tiresome that she had begun to act distant towards Okabe. It came rather at an ironic time, but she was soon summoned back to America and now thousands of miles away from him. Thousands of miles away from her love, from her happiness.

"Why does this world have to be so layered with complexity?" Kurisu asked herself.

Kurisu laid herself down, her eyes staring into the ceiling of her dorm room. Though it had been days since she had saved Okabe from disappearing from existence, she hadn't heard from him since. They didn't exactly have a disagreement or an indifference, yet they for some reason refrained from emailing each other. Perhaps he knew she needed some time alone, especially after experiencing time leaping for the first time. It was a gruesome process at the least.

She did miss that laugh, that Dr. Pepper, that stench-y mess of a lab coat. It brought her warmth and comfort, being able to be in the presence of that man.

Yet… she somehow felt-

No.

She somehow _knew_ that they were beginning to drift apart.

Where would her happiness go?

Kurisu closed her eyes. She had been so assertive the day she went through psychological hell to save him. She felt invincible, as if she could take on the immortal herself. She was confident in her abilities, confident in him, and confident in her love for him. Why is it that she began to re-question it all? Why was it so easy to love, yet so hard? How could something so right feel so wrong? She fought so intensely for the one who had her heart, yet she never knew how he obtained it in the first place.

The red-headed scientist tilted her head to eye her desk, laptop sitting idle. Maybe it was time to reconcile things.

Time to sort things out.

Time to find their place in this world.

Time to discover who they both are.

Time to pursue their happiness, together.

Time.

_Time.._

_**Time…**_

* * *

**Did this intro pique your curiosity any? Wondering what direction I'm going with this? I hope so. I know long walls of text without much dialogue can be tough to get through, but I really wanted to set a tone to the story. I tend to always do this with introductions, but as promised I always try to deliver interaction-rich chapters when they are viable. However, having any form of interaction wouldn't fit the isolation feel from both perspectives. Anyways, hope you liked it! Please, review, favorite, follow, the whole shebang. Or don't. Whatever is the choice of the Steins Gate.**


End file.
